Raiders could face 2 problems with No. 1 overall draft pick Fernando Mendoza

Fernando Mendoza seems like a shoo-in to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft by the Las Vegas Raiders.

A season at Indiana that featured the Heisman Trophy and a national championship combines with Mendoza's clear quarterback talent to make him the easy choice.

There are tons of things Mendoza does well, and he showed it all off during a 16-0 season that concluded with a gritty win in the title game over Miami.

There are just a couple of reasons for concern that might need to be addressed. In a new article on Saturday, ESPN's Jordan Reid broke these down.

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The first is Mendoza's throwing ability when forced out of the pocket.

"While Mendoza is comfortable within the confines of the pocket, he struggles when forced off his original launch point," Reid writes. "When required to move, Mendoza had a 53.2% completion percentage this season. Many of his inaccurate throws this season came when moved off his original launch point, flushed outside the pocket or forced into scramble situations. When facing true pressure, his completion percentage dropped to 50%."

Those numbers could be even worse, and given Mendoza has decent movement skills and instincts in general, they can probably be improved upon.

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The other potential improvement needed will be taking snaps under center, which Mendoza hardly ever did at Indiana.

"Mendoza has separated himself as the top passer in this year's class, but one thing at the next level which will be relatively new is operating from under center," Reid writes. "He played out of the shotgun almost exclusively this season, taking only 3% of his snaps under center. Working under center is important in the NFL, as it keeps defenses honest and helps further the influence of play-action on defenders, so Mendoza will have to work on those mechanics."

In the grand scheme of things, those are two relatively minor concerns. Mendoza clearly has the potential to be a star QB in the NFL, and the Raiders will be hoping that's exactly how it turns out.

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